A roughly 2 1/2-mile gap in CTA rail service that lasted 38 years on the Near South Side was eliminated Sunday, when Green Line trains started making stops at a station on Cermak Road near State Street.
The new $50 million Cermak-McCormick Place station...

A fundraiser at a tattoo parlor. A mustache invasion at a rally. College campus forums. And of course Facebook posts and YouTube videos.
Chicago’s mayoral candidates are trying to tap into the hip factor, in hopes of wooing 20-something and 30-...

CTA Green Line trains are starting to make stops at a new $50 million station serving McCormick Place and the Motor Row district on the Near South Side, officials said Sunday.
The Cermak-McCormick Place station, at Cermak Road and State Street, is...

Sidewalks may get a little more crowded if the City Council approves a proposal that would allow senior citizens to ride their bikes on the walkways.
Northwest Side Ald. Ariel Reboyras (30th) introduced a proposal Wednesday that would let senior...

Anyone who’s biked around parts of the South and Southwest sides knows it can be a very different experience than riding on some of the city’s most bike-heavy North Side streets, where you hardly can go the grocery store or hop on a bus or train without passing a bike lane or a Divvy station.
Think West Town, home to Milwaukee Avenue’s protected bike lane and the nearby Wood Street Neighborhood Greenway, or Lincoln Square, which is home to a stretch of Lincoln Avenue’s popular...

Ready to break some records this winter, Chicago? The first chance is coming up Thursday, which could be the coldest Jan. 8 on record if temperatures dip below -11, the record set in 1942 according to the National Weather Service.
Meteorologists are predicting that overnight temperatures between Wednesday and Thursday could range from -9 to -13 thanks to an Arctic high pressure air system, according to Amy Seeley, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. It likely will be the latest in a...

Now that it has moved from laid-back Portland, Oregon, to amped-up New York, the company that runs the Divvy bike-sharing program in Chicago and programs in other major cities is changing its name from Alta Bicycle Share to Motivate.
"I think it represents action, I think it represents energy, I think it's reflective of movement," Motivate CEO Jay Walder, who took over last fall after a career in public transportation, said Tuesday. "We wanted the name to reflect our energy and our passion and our...

Evanston community members are invited to learn and share input on Evanston's upcoming Divvy Bike Share program at a community meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 7 - 9 p.m., in the Morton Civic Center Council Chambers, 2100 Ridge Ave, according to a news release from the city.
The City of Evanston is partnering with the City of Chicago to expand Divvy Bike Share to Evanston in 2015 due to a $3 million state investment in the program, which will add 700 new bikes and 70 docking stations in Evanston, Oak Park...

Evanston city officials are looking at working with the Chicago Transit Authority on a pilot program in 2015 extending the hours of the Purple Line Express service – a need which arose in a number of comments in a recent city survey of local transit concerns.
In the survey, the CTA Purple Line Express emerged as one of the most popular comment topics, appearing in nearly 250 responses in the general poll and generating another 40 responses from a follow-up survey of Northwestern University students...

The news that plans to expand Chicago's Divvy bike program were back on track has excited officials and residents in Oak Park, where 12 bike rental stations are set to be installed next year.
Last month, the state approved funding the expansion of the bike-sharing system to Oak Park and Evanston through at $3 million grant, which will also help pay for a total of 50 new Divvy docking stations in West Side and far North Side Chicago neighborhoods.
"We're very excited," said Oak Park Parking and...

The coming year could produce a sales tax increase in La Grange, a decision on a new pool for Oak Park and River Forest High School and permission for bars to open in Oak Park.
Also ahead in 2015, ground is expected to be broken for a new development on the Rich Port YMCA site in La Grange and Divvy bikes will be coming to Oak Park.
Here's a look at what to expect in the region this new year.
La Grange to ask voters for sales tax increase
Voters in La Grange will be asked this spring to consider a...